If you've read Lumby Lines by Gail R. Fraser, you're in for a treat. If not, get with the program.

Stealing Lumby, second in the Lumby series, is as delightful as the first. The series has been declared a rival to Jan Karon's Mitford books. I beg to differ. Fraser's books have no rival. Where else will you find a moose wandering around a village with a folding deck chair enmeshed in his rack? Or an appropriately attired statue of a pelican appearing out of the mist at village events? I loved the blind horse being ridden by its elderly, almost blind owner. And how about the Moo Moo Iditerod?

A famous painting is stolen from a shipment that was headed as a loaner to a London museum. Said painting of two barns in Lumby is reputed to be one of the finest examples of landscape painting ever done in the United States. The plot revolves around the artist and years gone by. The wonderful residents, who people this charming town somewhere in the Northwest, fill in the plot line with their own problems. Of course, problems do prevail. But it's fun to become a part of the village and listen in to their solutions – some of which make one laugh out loud, while others are wise and knowing, and some are just plain crazy.

Which should make Stealing Lumby scamper to the top of your must-read list. After Lumby Lines, of course.

Note: This release has been delayed, as the series will now be published by Penguin NAL.

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